Bowl Notes

Clemson notes *This is Clemson’s second win over a top 10 team this year, as Tennessee was sixth entering the game and Florida State was third. This is the first time since the 1981 National Championship season that Clemson has beaten two top 10 teams in the same season. Clemson defeated three top 10 teams that year, including fourth ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. That is the only other time Clemson has defeated more than one top 10 team in the same year.

*This was Clemson’s 50th all-time victory over an AP top 25 team.

*Clemson finished the season with just six lost fumbles, NONE by running backs.

*Clemson had six sacks in tonight’s game, a season high.

*Charlie Whitehurst went over the 5000 yard passing mark this evening with his 246 yards passing. He became just the second ACC quarterback in history to go over the 5000 yard passing mark by the end of his sophomore year. Phillip Rivers, who just finished his career at NC State, is the only other ACC quarterback to accomplish that feat.

*Toure Francis, Justin Miller and Charles Bennett all had their first career sacks in Clemson’s victory.

*Chad Jasmin had a career high 130 yards rushing in his final game as a Clemson running back. He had a 31-yard run during the game that was also the longest of his career. A 23-yard run his freshman year was his previous best. He also averaged a career high 8.7 yards per rush. It was just the second 100-yard rushing game by a Clemson player this year, and the most rushing yards by a Clemson player in a game since Woody Dantzler (who was at the game on the Clemson sidelines) had 135 yards rushing against Duke in his final home game at Clemson in 2001. It was the most yards rushing by a Clemson running back since Travis Zachery had 151 yards rushing against Maryland in 2000.

*Derrick Hamilton became Clemson’s career reception leader in this victory. He had five catches to give him 167 for his career, one more than Rod Gardner had between 1997-00. Gardner was at the game this evening. Hamilton still has another year to play.

*Over the last four games of the season Tommy Bowden defeated the #2 winningest active coach in Phillip Fulmer, the #4 winningest active coach in Bobby Bowden, and the #11 winningest active coach in Lou Holtz.

*This was Clemson’s first win over Tennessee since 1919. The Tigers had lost seven in a row to the Volunteers.

*Derrick Hamilton had 69 receiving yards, moving him over 1000 yards for the season. He finished the season with 1026. He is just the second Clemson player to reach 1000 yards receiving in a season. Rod Gardner is the other.

*Kyle Browning scored a touchdown on his only rush of the night, an 8-yard run on the “Panther Play.” This is the third time Clemson has used this play since Tommy Bowden has been at Clemson and the Tigers have scored a touchdown all three times. In 2001 Clemson used the play against Virginia and Airese Currie scored on a 19-yard run on the play in Boise, ID against Louisiana Tech. Browning made it three in a row this evening.

*Clemson established a school record for total offense and first downs in a season this evening. Clemson ended the year with 5,467 yards and 303 first downs.

*Kevin Youngblood finished the year with an even 70 receptions, tied for the second highest figure in Clemson history.

*This was just the 11th victory over a top 10 team in Clemson history. It was the third under Tommy Bowden. His other top 10 wins took place in 2001 at ninth ranked Georgia Tech and this year against a third ranked Florida State. Clemson’s wins over Florida State (3rd) and Tennessee (6th) represent the first and fourth highest ranked wins in Clemson history.

*Cole Chason had a higher punting average than All-American Dustin Colquitt this evening, something Bowden announced to the team in the locker room after the game. His 42.0 average tonight, included a 41.5 net figure. It was just his fifth game this year in which he averaged at least 40 yards a punt.

*The team that scored first won every Clemson game this year. Clemson was 9-0 when it scored first and 0-4 when it didn’t

*Derrick Hamilton’s 58-yard punt return in the first half was the longest in Clemson history in a bowl game. It broke the record of 47 yards by Billy Davis against Nebraska in 1981. Davis was at the game this evening.

*Chad Jasmin’s 130 yards rushing were the most in a bowl game by a Clemson running back since the 1996 season when Raymond Priester had 151 yards rushing against LSU in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.